SPRINGFIELD OHIO

Snyder Memorial Arch    14x16

High St. United Methodist     12x16                                                                                 

   This beautiful church stands adjacent the corner of  High and Spring Streets.  Dedicated in 1904 at a construction cost of $48,000.00. It is styled after an "English Country Church". The building was heated by massive coal furnaces until 1939 when they were replaced with steam.

The Lagonda Club     10x12

  By the end of th 1800's the industrial revolution had transformed Springfield  into one of the busiest manufacturing centers in the country. Captains of industry who called the city home had amassed vast fortunes rivaled only by the Vanderbilt, Rockefeller and Carnegie families on the eastern seaboard. An era of privilage and inherited wealth ensued. This ornate structure known for many years as "the Lagonda Club" was built as a gathering place for the local elite. Opened in 1895 the building designed by renowned architect Frank M. Andrews boasts Moorish, Spanish Gothic and Italianate elements. The 1920's and the rise to prominence of the Springfield country club  began the decline of this once magnificent structure.                                                    

 The Bushnell Building    9x12

  Designed by the firm of Sheply, Rutan and Coolage the Bushnell Building on the square in downtown Springfield was built in 1893 for Asa Bushnell who in three years was to become Govenor of Ohio. Several styles make up the facade of the structure Beaux Art 5 part composition, and 2nd Renaissance among the most prominent. Originally it housed a bank and dry goods store. 

Stone Footbridge    9x11

  Built sometime before the turn of the century this rustic footbridge had fallen into disrepair by 1965 and was in the process of being dismantled. A park trustee had stated the bridge "was of no esthetic or architectural value". Public outcry convinced the park board to change its mind deciding instead to restore the crumbling structure. Luckily the stone that had already been removed had only been dumped nearby at the southwest end of the park across from Ohio Edison.

Westcott House    11x16

    The Frank Lloyd Wright designed home was designed and built for auto industrialist Burton Westcott who began his career as a carriage maker in Richmond Indiana. Wright stayed in Springfield with the Westcott family getting to know them in order to design a home that was not only functional but would meet the families every need.

St. Raphael    10x16

  This imposing structure stands as a monument to God but also to it's architect Springfield native Charles A. Cregar who designed some of the most beautiful buildings in the city. He is said to have been a remarkable man putting himself through design school in record time and not having the benefit of formal architectural training. One of the last projects he designed, the church is built of Berea Sandstone in the Romanesque Revival style also boasts many Gothic influences. Carles Cregar was dead by the age of 38 several years before the completion of St. Raphaels in 1898. The east belltower peaks at 135' while the west stands 185' tall.

Asa Bushnell Mansion    12x15

  While in office Govenor Asa Bushnell often conducted affairs of state from his home on East High St. At the turn of the century it took three days to commute to the capitol in Columbus stopping to pick up fresh horses on the journey. Prior to his election Asa Bushnell held the post of president with Warder, Bushnell and Glessner, Springfield Gas Company and the First National bank of Springfield. The first would later become International Harvester.

The Old Bandstand    10x12

    Old bandstand near the pond in Snyder park.

Schulers Bakery    10x16

  Some of us remember days when almost all business was loacally owned and operated. There are a few left like Schulers "The home of Homemade ".

The Foos Manor      8x12

  Built for industrialist John Foos about 1870 this home is one of a select few in the city built entirely out of Limestone masonary construction. While its Italianate facade seems almost austere compared to other fine homes of the period the interior is truly impressive in its appointments.

The Oliver Warren Kelly Home      14x16

  This home was built for Oliver Warren Kelly son of industrialist O.S. Kelly.born into privilage the younger Kelly studied languages and engineering in the principle cities of europe from 1869 to 1873. Returning to Springfield he constructed this Victorian Italianate brick residence.

Sycamore Hills Church    9x14

    The old country chapels and churches are still there, in many instances the congregation has grown to old to keep the woods at bay. Look for them when the leaves are off the trees.

Brick Residence E.High St.   12x16

 The canopy of a great maple tree gives this interesting brick home on East High St. an aura of grace.

The Francis Bookwalter Home    14x16

 This ornate wood structure has been called "the most unique home in Springfield". Bookwalter another 19th century industrialist built his home in the style known as Second Empire. He must have favored over the top architecture even for the time, as is evidenced if you visit his memorial at Historic Ferncliff Cemetery also arguably the most unique in death.

Steps to St. Bernards      9x12

 By the mid 1800's the influx of German Catholic immigrants to Springfield warrented the creation of a new parish. Plans were made to erect the new church on the corner of Water and Main streets, a foundation was laid but then abandoned probably due to structural problems. A cornerstone was finally laid at the current site of the church in 1867 the building completed in 1870 at a cost of around $20,000.00

Wescott  2      9x11

The old cemetery on East High St. gives the feeling the Westcott house is actually built on the Prairie. The home built for Burton Westcott was a departure from the complexities of the Victorian era, fitting for a man who began as a carriage maker and ended a manufacturer of the new automobiles.

Brick Italianate     14x16

Beautiful, untouched Italianate brick home on South Fountain Ave.

Western Ave. Entrance      9x11

Snyder Park opened on April 20, 1897 to much fanfare and a grand opening ceremony. While the arch at the Western Ave. entrance was not erected until 1904 the park boasted gardens fountains and a working waterfall fed by Buck Creek.

The Limestone Steps     14x16

Structures built only for esthetic value are rare in any era. The Arch at the Western Ave. entrance to Snyder Park and the Limestone steps leading down into the basin below are indeed rare gems they were built at a time when money  was no object and the beauty of our surroundings outweighed the cost.

 MailPouch Barn Rt.33       9x14

If you look hard enough you'll find an old MailPouch barn, maybe tucked away behind brush and scrub trees. Once they were high tech advertising. To me the older they get the more beautiful they become.